Herbs, terrestrial, rarely epiphytic, glabrous except for minute hairs in lip or bracts or both. Rhizome creeping, not branching, with scales; roots filiform, not branching. Pseudobulb consisting of 1 internode, alternating 1-6 with a leaf and 1 with an inflorescence, ascending, clearly articulate with petiole or scape, scales tubular, membranous, soon disintegrating. Leaf 1 per pseudobulb, not deciduous, convolute, not sheathing at base, plicate; petiole channeled. Inflorescence an erect raceme on a leafless pseudobulb, both scape and rachis elongating during anthesis, scape with few internodes, scales tubular, persistent; floral bracts persistent during anthesis. Flowers resupinate, turned to all sides, widely spaced, most open simultaneously, opening widely, spreading. Sepals free; lateral sepals inserted on column foot. Petals equal in size and shape; lip movable, narrowly attached to column foot, 3-lobed, without a spur (but column foot provided with a spur), fleshy; hypochile with claw on either side strongly pleated, front part on either side with an erect lateral lobe, keels 3, conspicuous, median one shorter; epichile recurved, concave, lateral margins incurved or inrolled, on base with 2 or 3 keels continued from hypochile. Column straight to curved forward, with 2 small, rounded lobes on front of column foot and 2 lateral, fleshy keels that continue upward on column, where they fuse and end below stigma, margins on either side at or below middle with a seam drawn out into a flat, triangular or suborbicular wing that continues upward as a narrow seam, foot with a saccate spur; anther 2-locular; pollinia 2, hard, without caudicles, stipe, or viscidium. Capsule with persistent remnants of perianth.

The genus Chrysoglossum has been monographed by van der Burgh and de Vogel (Orchid Monogr. 8: 135-174. 1997).

Four species: tropical Asia to New Guinea and the Pacific islands; two species in China.

(Authors: Chen Xinqi (陈心启 Chen Sing-chi); Jeffrey J. Wood)